Governor of Guam

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
TERRITORY OF GUAM

Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554

In the Matter of

Federal-State Joint Board on
Universal Service

CC Docket No. 96-45

REPLY COMMENTS
OF THE
GOVERNOR OF GUAM

The Governor of Guam (the "Governor" or "Guam") hereby submits Reply Comments in the above-captioned proceeding instituted by the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC" or "Commission") on March 8, 1996.[1] The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order Establishing Joint Board ("NPRM") is intended to implement Section 254 of the Communications Act of 1934 as amended by the Telecommunications Act of 1996.[2]

The Governor's comments focus on three issues raised by this proceeding:

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1 Federal State Joint Board on Universal Service, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order Establishing Joint Board, FCC 96- 93, March 8, 1996.

2 Telecommunications Act of 1996, Pub.L.No. 104-104, 110 Stat. 56 (1996) .

o Universal Service proposals must include Guam and the other insular areas. Therefore, all public institutions in Guam should have access to advanced telecommunications and information services that are available to other regions of the Nation at rates that are reasonably comparable to the rates charged for similar services in urban areas.
o Under the Telecommunications Act, access charges in rural areas are to be equivalent to charges in urban areas. Because there are no "urban areas" per se in the insular areas, insular areas should be treated the same as urban west coast areas for purposes of determining access charges.
o The NPRM requests comments on the designation of eligible carriers. The Governor of Guam requests the Commission designate Comsat as the designated eligible carrier for Guam and mandate that it set rates equivalent to Domsat rates between Guam and other U.S. points. Additionally, the Governor recommends that any other carrier providing service between Guam and the rest of the United States be offered status similar to Comsat as a designated eligible telecommunications carrier.

Guam's goal is to assist the Commission by participating in these ongoing efforts to implement the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

I. PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS ON GUAM SHOULD BE TREATED THE SAME AS THEIR COUNTERPARTS ON THE U. S. MAINLAND FOR PURPOSES OF IMPLEMENTING UNIVERSAL SUPPORT MECHANISMS

The Governor of Guam supports those commenters who recognize the great benefit telecommunication access will provide schools, libraries, and medical providers. The Governor also agrees that their is an existing "gap between need and availability" in telecommunications service at public institutions.[3] This gap is even more significant for Guam because of its prior treatment as an international, rather than domestic, point

One of the goals of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 was to make telecommunications service accessible and affordable to all Americans. Accordingly, Universal Service support mechanisms provided to mainland institutions should apply to public institutions on Guam and the insular areas should be included in any Universal Service proposals considered by the Commission. This will facilitate connecting every classroom and library on Guam to the information superhighway.

The Governor concurs with the comments that core services for telemedicine applications should include high speed digital and Internet access.[4] Further, the Governor recommends that the

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3 Comments of Richard W. Riley, Secretary of p.2.

4 Comments of the American Telemedicine Association, p.7.

Commission adopt a policy to allow public institutions access to the full range of telecommunications and information services that are technically available to any other local customers at rates that are comparable to urban areas. The Governor agrees that the Commission's rules should be competitively and technologically neutral.[5]

There is also support from commenters that all users be given access to a wide range of telecommunications and information services, and that Universal Service support be provided for switched voice and digital services (such as ISDN) as well as access to the National Information Infrastructure.[6] The Governor's Office has recently been connected to the Internet. The Governor has received messages from well-wishers, those with problems needing attention, and those providing their solutions to some of Guam's pressing needs. The Governor understands the power of this technology. From a business perspective, affordable access to the National Information Infrastructure will have a significant impact on Guam's business community. Thus, the business community should be included in voice, digital and information services that receive Universal Service support.

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5 NPRM, [[paragraph]]17.

6 Comments of the Chief Counsel for Advocacy United States Small Business Administration, p. 7.

II. INSULAR AREAS SHOULD BE TREATED THE SAME AS URBAN WEST COAST AREAS FOR PURPOSES OF DETERMINING ACCESS CHARGES

Another Issue raised in the comments is how to determine the baseline for access charges for insular areas. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 provides that rural areas within a state should have the same access charges as the urban areas within that state.[7] All areas within the insular areas are rural, therefore, there is no existing frame of reference for purposes of determining an appropriate -access charge under the proposed scheme.

The Governor suggests that the Commission consider using a "surrogate" urban area for purposes of determining comparable rates for Guam. One possibility is to use urban areas located on the west coast of the United States as the baseline for determining appropriate rates for telecommunications services.

III. COMSAT SHOULD BE DESIGNATED AS AN ELIGIBLE TELECOMMUNICATIONS CARRIER AND ELIGIBLE FOR UNIVERSAL PRICE SUPPORT MECHANISMS

The Commission requested comments on the designation of common carriers as eligible telecommunications carriers, thus

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7 Section 254(b)(3) of the 1996 Act provides that consumers in "all regions of the Nation' have access to telecommunications and information services that are reasonably comparable to services provided in urban areas at rates comparable to rates charged for similar services in urban areas.

making them eligible for universal service support.[8] In its comments, Comsat stated that it is not an interstate carrier and that it does not fall within the scope of universal service contributions.[9] Guam disagrees that Comsat does not provide domestic interstate service. Comsat does provide limited domestic interstate services between Guam, other Pacific insular areas and Hawaii and the U.S. Mainland. At this time, however, there are no domestic interstate satellite services at domestic rates that include Guam.

Satellite services between Guam and all other areas of the United States are only available through Intelsat facilities. Comsat is the United States signatory to Intelsat, and is the only authorized provider of Intelsat services in the United States, including Guam. Therefore, Guam believes that Comsat should be designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier for interstate satellite services between Guam and the rest of the United States. As a designated eligible carrier, Comsat should be entitled to receive Universal Service support as provided in [[section]] 102 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.[10]

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8 NPRM, [[paragraph]] 17.

9 Comments of Comsat Corporation, p. 9.

10 Section 102(e)(1) of the Act states:

A common carrier designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier......... Shall be

The Commission has stated that it wishes to maintain telecommunication facility neutrality.[11] The Governor of Guam, therefore, encourages the Commission to mandate comparable subsidies to any other carrier providing equivalent domestic interstate service on non-Intelsat facilities. Regardless of service or facilities, any service provider receiving price support must offer its services at domestically rate averaged prices.

IV. NEWLY FORMED GOVERNOR'S WORKING GROUP TO ASSIST THE COMMISSION IN ITS EFFORTS

The Governor has invited interested parties to form a Working Group to assist the Commission in developing mechanisms for rate integration.[12] The Governor expects that the Working Group will also consider how Universal Service support mechanisms can be used to promote rate integration. The Working Group will provide the Commission with a report on its efforts this summer.

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eligible to receive universal service support in accordance with section 254 . . .

Moreover, Section 102(e)(2) and (3) allows a state to designate a common carrier as an eligible telecommunications area.

11 NPRM, [[paragraph]] 17.

12 Joint Comments of the Governor of Guam and the Guam Telephone Authority, CC Docket No. 96-91, filed April 19, 1996.

CONCLUSION

Guam appreciates the Commission's efforts in ensuring that universal service support mechanisms are provided throughout the nation, including the insular areas. Guam's community -- children and adults alike -- will benefit greatly when Guam's schools, libraries, and medical providers are provided affordable access to telecommunications services.,-Moreover, Guam's business community will also advance with affordable service as they will be able to more actively compete on the U.S. Mainland and global marketplace.

Guam will continue to work with the Commission and through the Joint Board on matters concerning the implementation of Universal Service in Guam.

Respectfully Submitted,

Carl T.C. Gutierrez
Governor of Guam

May 7, 1996